The Impact Of Pelé On US Soccer: Reflections Of A Former New York Cosmos Teammate
Robbinsville: US footballer Bobby Smith does not hold back his tears when paying tribute to “King” Pele.
“The rise of the game in the United States owes almost everything to the Brazilian legend”, says his former New York Cosmos teammate.
Pele’s impact on US soccer was very significant, his presence made people interested in watching the game of soccer on American soil.
Still athletic at 71, Robert “Bobby” Smith spoke at his training center for building players, the Bob Smith Soccer Academy in his native New Jersey.
At the edge of the indoor synthetic fields where children train, Smith, who was top defender in his younger days, gazes fondly at a giant poster of him & Pele, who died Thursday of cancer at the age of 82.
At the edge of the indoor synthetic fields where children train, Smith, who was top defender in his younger days, gazes fondly at a giant poster of him & Pele, who died Thursday of cancer at the age of 82.
Smith, a professional player in Philadelphia in te1970s, signed in 1976 with the New York Cosmos for $100,000.
Pele, coming out of semi-retirement at 34, had signed a year earlier for at least 10 times that amount & would lead the Cosmos to the 1977 North American soccer championship , with 31 goals in 56 games.
Bobby is an ardent, lifelong fan of Pele. As a young boy, he said he “never thought for a second that we’d be on the same team.
Pele was key in attracting an array of other talent to the Cosmos team: After American goalie Bob Rigby, recruited at the same time as Smith , came Italian Glorigo Chinaglia, German Frank Beckenbaur & Brazilian Carlos Alberto.
Bobby credits the USA's soccer national program to PELE
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